Remote Desktop: frequently asked questions

Applies to Windows XP

The Remote Desktop feature in Windows XP Professional gives you access to all the programs, resources, and accessories on your computer from another Windows-based computer. Get answers to common questions about using Remote Desktop.

No. However, you can upgrade from Windows XP Home Edition to Windows XP Professional to get Remote Desktop. You can use Windows XP Home Edition as the client for accessing your Windows XP Professional computer running Remote Desktop.

Tip

If you or someone else has configured Windows Firewall to allow no exceptions, Remote Desktop will not work. To allow exceptions in Windows Firewall, open Security Center in Control Panel, click Windows Firewall, and then clear the check box next to Don't allow exceptions.

If you're using the Internet Connection Firewall on Windows XP SP 1 or earlier, in the Network Connections window, right-click the connection through which you will use Remote Desktop, and then click Properties. Click the Advanced tab, and then select the check box for Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet. Click the Settings button. In the Services list, select the check box for Remote Desktop.

Yes, the Remote Desktop Connection client supports Remote Desktop Protocol 5.1. The client is backwards-compatible with Windows 2000 and Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition. When using the client against older servers, you will get the features of the older protocol.

Port 3389 is the only port you need to open. Windows will attempt to stream sound through User Datagram Protocol (UDP) first. If no port is available for UDP, sound will stream through a virtual channel in Remote Desktop Protocol, which uses port 3389.

The Remote Desktop Web Connection is the Remote Desktop Connection client packaged as an ActiveX control that can be embedded in a webpage to provide access to a Terminal Server or a computer running Windows XP Professional with Remote Desktop enabled.

On the server side, you need Internet Information Server 4.0 or later. Windows XP Professional comes with Internet Information Server 5.1 out of the box.

On the client side, it will only run on the Windows 9x, Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me), Windows NT (Intel only), and Windows 2000 operating systems using Internet Explorer 4 or later. It is not supported on any other platform.